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Thursday, January 22, 2015

Let Them Be Little

Sometimes I feel like busy days are unfair for toddlers. Yes, we need to get things done. That is life. But some days we need to get too much done, and he has no other option than to join me. Today I had to cart Milo around to 4 showings, then to Target, then to the office so I could scan files, then home for lunch and naps, and right after that, errands for a lady I assist, back home, and more showings (Trevor was home by then thankfully! I was laying on the floor starving right before I left home so I can't imagine how Milo would have handled the situation!).

Some days we play at home for hours on end, driving cars and playing outside, and other days we spend all day driving around town, getting in and out of the car (in my opinion the most difficult thing about motherhood- dang carseat buckles). It's hard to find a balance between crossing things off the checklist and having pajama and hot wheels days.

I can always tell when we've done too much or I'm trying to cram too many things into one day. Milo generally does pretty ok on errands. As well as can be expected from a crazy almost 2-year-old. But when I push the limits, he is really over it, really fast.

Today was just one of those days that work came up just about all day, and during our (unexpected) trip to the store in the afternoon, I paid for it. Milo was jumping in and out of the car cart (which didn't have a belt and gosh dangit he had already seen them so I couldn't very well use a normal cart), trying to climb onto the floor WHILE I was pushing the cart, yelling, putting his fingers on the conveyor belt, running away... he just was so not in the mood to run errands. Meanwhile, what was supposed to be a quick stop at the store to pick up some prescriptions and Kleenex turned into essentially a wrestling match that left me dripping in sweat as I carried my (shoeless) toddler out of the store with one arm under his arms around his chest and the rest of him squirming to escape. It was intense.

And it's nightmare trips like this that remind me that yes. Usually my little boy is pretty good in public, all things considered. And usually when he has a rough time like this, it's because I'm pushing the boundaries. And then I feel rotten for making him do too much. As much as I think it's important that he knows how to handle himself and understands that the nature of real life is that we have to get things done some days, I need to remember that he's not even 2 and lives for playing cars. I've found that when we keep things good and balanced, with plenty of play time and intermittent errands, we work together at a pretty good hum.

I can tell you this though. There's nobody I'd rather be lugging in and out of a carseat all over town than this sweet boy.